Rotors of gas turbine engines, which may include or form part of an impeller, fan, compressor, turbine, etc., are often subjected to significant centrifugal forces stemming from the relatively high rotational speeds at which gas turbine engines are operated. The rotors are engineered to withstand these structurally harsh operating conditions and while static effects are relatively straightforward to deal with, dynamic effects can pose particular engineering challenges.
Minimizing weight is a permanent concern in the aeronautics industry in general, and is a particularly significant concern in the case of rotors since the weight of rotors can influence the extent of the rotor dynamic effects which may need to be dealt with by further additional weight at the shaft. While attempts to limit the amount of material used in the rotor, and thus limit its associated weight, have been made, there remain practical limitations to the designing of the rotor shape however, such as limitations imposed by the context of commercial-scale production for instance.
Although known rotors and associated methods are satisfactory to a certain degree, there always remains room for improvement. Particularly, any weight savings which can be achieved is desirable in aero gas turbine applications.